Whitecaps FC earn top seed for the 2013 Amway Canadian Championship

Thanks to Saturday’s goalless draw at Real Salt Lake in their Major League Soccer regular season finale, Vancouver Whitecaps FC (11W-13L-10D; 11th overall in MLS) secured the top seed for the 2013 Amway Canadian Championship.

The draw in Sandy, Utah – coupled with Montreal Impact’s 1-0 home defeat to Eastern Conference rivals New England Revolution in their season finale on Saturday – ensured the Blue and White will be the top seed for Canada’s CONCACAF Champions League qualifying tournament next spring.

Montreal (12W-16L-6D; 12th overall in MLS) will be the second seed, while four-time Voyageurs Cup holders (ACC champions) Toronto FC (5W-21L-8D; 19th overall in MLS) will be the third seed. Second-tier North American Soccer League side FC Edmonton (5W-13L-10D; 8th overall in NASL) will be the fourth seed.

As a result, next year’s ACC semifinals will see Whitecaps FC face FC Edmonton over two legs, while Montreal will face TFC over two legs. The semifinals will take place on April 24, 2013 (first leg) and May 1, 2013 (second leg), with the ACC final series set for May 15, 2013 (first leg) and May 29, 2013 (second leg).

The 2013 Voyageurs Cup winner will represent Canada in the 2013-14 edition of the CONCACAF Champions League, which in turn, will determine CONCACAF’s representative for the 2014 FIFA Club World Cup in Morocco.